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New Zealand Accordion Championships and Festival
- New Zealand
The New
Zealand Accordion Championships and Festival and South Pacific
Accordion Championships will be held from May 30th to June 1st at
Epsom Girls Grammar School in Epsom, Auckland.
The event will include a "Welcome Evening"
for overseas competitors and guests, followed by two days of competitions
for soloists, duos, trios, quartets ensembles and orchestras in
a variety of age group classes. Entries close April 30th, 2003.
For further details email: leopanzic@xtra.co.nz
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Baltic International Accordion Quintet Tours Lithuania
and Latvia
 Contributed
by Vladimir Ushakov
The Baltic International Accordion Quintet consisting
of accordionists from Latvia (Svetlana Stavitskaya), Lithuania (Eduardas
Gabnys and Gennady Savkov) and Russia (Sergei Likhachov and Vladimir
Ushakov) have just completed a tour of Lithuania and Latvia. In
Lithuania the Quintet performed at the International Accordion Festival
in Shiauliaj from March 21st to 23rd, organized by the Shiauliaj
Music Conservatoire.
The group then traveled to Limbazhi in Latvia,
where they took part in the 7th biannual International Accordion
Festival, organized by Viktor Nikandrov, Director of the Limbazhi
Music School. On March 29th the Quintet took part in a concert in
Riga's prestigious concert hall "Ave Sol".
Their tour program included different musical
styles and genres including works by V. Locheris (Remembering Corelli),
A. Templeton (Bach goes to Town), A. Byzov, Piazzolla, F. Poulenc,
V. Gavrilin plus favorites like In the Mood, Moonlight Serenade,
Chattanooga choo-choo etc.
During the upcoming summer, the ensemble will
take part in the Summer festival & seminar in Palanga, Lithuanian.
In Autumn they will perform at the International accordion festival
in Daugavpils (Latvia) with a chamber orchestra. For future concert
details email:
v-ushakov@infopro.spb.su
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Duo Paris-Moscou Performs in Marcigny - France
 Duo
Paris-Moscou performed in Marcigny, Bourgogne (Domi's home region)
on April 11th and 12th. Originally one concert was booked, but the
duo were so popular that the Tourist Office of Marcigny, organized
a second concert. The duo performed different musical styles showing
the versatility of the accordion including classical music by Mozart,
Rossini & Buxtehude, French variety by Claude Thomain, Marcel
Azzola, Franck Angelis & Joé Rossi, Russian music by
Bysov, Derbienko, Semionov,
& Koniaiev and French musette pieces by Maurice Larcange.
The audience were given the opportunity to discover
this variety of music performed on the accordion. The concert organizer
was so impressed, they are planning an international festival for
the accordion in the future.
During the last week, Roman & Domi also
gave a master-class at the C.N.I.M.A in Larodde with students from
the school, Nathalie Boucheix, Monsieur Mornet, Franck Angelis,
Aurélien Noël, Claude Sauvage and Pascal Meurge. Attendees
included students from France, Reunion Island, Japan and Poland.
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Accordion Seminar with Claudio Jacomucci - Italy
Claudio
Jacomucci will hold an accordion seminar from July 24th to 27th
in Moscufo (province of Pescara). The event, which is organized
by the "Mantice Armonico" Cultural Association will offer
a methodology aimed at extending the expressive skills of the musicians
as well as developing their relationship with the instrument and
the acts of making music and listening to it.
The first part of the seminar will be an introduction
on the Technique developed by F.M. Alexander, while the second will
cover everyday practice strategies and specific accordion resources.
The aim is to produce the ability to make interpretative choices
based not on school models but on a deep awareness of the expressive
and compositional characters of the work.
Each participant will be allowed to present
a program of their own choice including pieces of different styles.
Applications close on July 5th, 2003. For further information email:
alisia.fragassi@virgilio.it
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 1st
International Live Festival in Samara - Russia
Contributed by Anatoli Putintsev
The 1st International Live Festival was held
at the Togliatti Arts Institute in Togliatti, Samara region in April.
Performers included accordionists Sergey Voitenko, Yuri Medyanik
and Aidar
Gainullin, winner of the 2001 Coupe
Mondiale in England.
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Owen Murray Performs in London - England
 Contributed
by Holda
Paoletti-Kampl
Owen
Murray gave a recital in St. Marylebone Church, London on April
1st with cellist Oliver Coates. They performed works by Elena Firsova,
Ernest Bloch, David Gorton, Stephane Altier and Saint-Saens.
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Italian Accordionist Gigi Stok Dies
 Contributed
by Romano Viazzani
The City of Parma is mourning the loss of one of its
musical sons. Gigi Stok died at the end of February this year after a
3 year battle against Alzheimers. He was buried on March 2nd in the village
of his birth, Bianconese in the province of Parma where he began his career
accompanying his father.
Gigi Stok (Luigi Stocchi) studied the accordion under
the guidance of Maestro Marmiroli, who together with Savi were amongst
the best accordionists of their era. At the age of 13 he made his public
debut together with his father, a singing storyteller, and here started
his road to fame. After the interruption of the second World War, Stok
joined the Tamani Orchestra a famous ensemble of its day, and began to
include some of his own compositions in the orchestra's repertoire.
Gigi was awarded the "Life Achievement Award"
at the London Accordion Festival 2001. He was unfortunately unable to
attend due to his already advancing illness but Corrado Medioli, who brought
a letter of thanks from his wife Carolina, accepted the award on his behalf.
Gigi
Stok limited himself to playing the dance music he knew best but raised
the profile of the accordion and it's technical possibilities within that
genre. He will be missed by many.
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New Accordion Book: Akordeoi alaia, Jolly accordion
- Spain
Contributed by Dr
Herbert Scheibenreif Manager of Friedrich
Lips Productions
 Ricardo
Llanos (Spain) has edited a second edition of his accordion method
Acordéon divertido (Akordeoi alaia, Jolly accordion). The
book is totally translated into English, so is available now in
three languages: Spanish, Basque and English. Relevant text aimed
for teachers is now in the methodological guide section. This means
that the section directly aimed at the student is now much clearer
and the section for teachers is more compact.
Almost all the pages have been redesigned and
more drawings have been added. New sections include:
- Complete redesign of the chapter dedicated
to the student's position and to the holding of the accordion.
- Redesign and new elaboration of the chapter
dedicated to the bellows, resulting in a now much more attractive
presentation for the student.
- Two new cards specially dedicated to the
coordination of the two hands.
- A clearer and more extensive study of articulation.
- A greater clarity in the explanation of fingering
as well as a generalization to the different methods of changing
position.
- Restructuring and extension of the chapter
dedicated to the accompaniment of the um-pa-pa type.
- Use of the songs for improvisation.
- More clarity in the presentation of scales.
- The bibliography has been modernized with
new references
For more information please email: rikardo@ya.com
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New Double CD "O Brasil Da Sanfona" -
Brazil
Contributed by Felipe Pereira
 A
new double CD entitled "O Brasil Da Sanfona" is now available.
The CD project is focused on 4 regions of Brazil where the accordion
has special meaning and is part of the daily life of its people:
The Northeast, including 9 states of the nation, rich in popular
culture and religious traditions, Central Brazil, São Paulo,
the biggest metropolis in South America, and Rio Grande do Sul,
the lower tip of the country, between Uruguai and Argentina, influenced
by the Spanish, Italian, German and Indian cultures.
The two CDs were recorded live in São
Paulo, Brazil. Performers include Dominguinhos, Camarão,
Dino Rocha, Arlindo dos 8 Baixos, Zé Calixto, Renato Borghetti,
Luciano Maia, Gilberto Monteiro, Oscar do Reis, Toninho Ferragutti,
Caçulinha, Gilda Montans, Meire Genaro and Regina Weissman.
Tracks include"Toque de Pife", "Festejo",
"Espinha de Bacalhau" and "Adiós Nonino".
For further details email: felipeatp@hotmail.com
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Accordionist
Olexiy Suslov performed a concert of classical period music recently
with Galyna Krival (piano) in the old Castle in Poland. Their program
included works by Schubert, Saint-Saens and Tschaikowsky, as well
as new compositions such as "Poem for accordion and piano"
(Suslov). The event was organized by G. Preis, representative of
Spiess-Urania.
Kathy
Mayer would like information on the 1905 G. Galleazzi button accordion
(pictured) such as history, general information and a possible estimate
of its worth. Email: